Bucknell University
18-6, 8-0PL
Army
10-13, 3-5PL
Bucknell Men Outlast Army 81-68 for 10th Straight Win
2/4/2012 7:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Feb. 4, 2012
| BUY PHOTOS | Video Highlights
LEWISBURG, Pa. - After being honored prior to the game for scoring his 1,000th career point, senior Bryan Cohen added 19 more to his total and turned in another stellar defensive effort to lead Bucknell to a hard-fought 81-68 win over Army on Saturday night at Sojka Pavilion. Cohen went 8-for-10 from the floor and helped break open a close game in the second half with three critical drives to the basket, helping the Bison to their 10th straight win overall and their national-best 18th consecutive conference victory.
Now 18-6 on the season and 8-0 in the Patriot League, Bucknell maintained a two-game lead over American and Lehigh, both of which posted wins earlier in the day. The 10-game winning streak equals the longest under fourth-year head coach Dave Paulsen, and it is tied for the 11th-longest in program history.
This one was not as easy as the 13-point final margin would indicate, however. The Bison trailed by five points in the early going, and despite shooting a whopping 70 percent (17-24) in the first half, their halftime lead was just eight at 42-34.
Army (10-13, 3-5) opened the second half with a 10-2 run, tying the game at 44 on a layup by Milton Washington. The score would also be deadlocked at 46, 48 and 50 before Cohen and the Bison finally went ahead to stay.
Cohen broke the 50-50 tie with a drive to the basket for a 3-point play. With the Bison leading 55-54, Cohen went hard to the rim in transition and earned a goaltending call. After two free throws by Jordan Springer made it a one-point game again, Cohen again took it to the basket, drew a foul and completed a 3-point play.
After Ella Ellis hit 1 of 2 from the line, Bryson Johnson took a handoff from Cohen deep on the left wing and canned his fourth 3-pointer of the night in as many attempts. In the midst of a stretch in which it allowed only two field goals in the final 10 minutes of the game, Bucknell was able to extend its lead at the free throw line. Mike Muscala made three straight trips to the foul line and went 4-for-6, and then Ben Brackney, who played key minutes for the Bison down the stretch, made two charity tosses to make it a 10-point game at 69-59 with 4:06 to play.
Moments after getting a tooth knocked out in a collision along the sideline, Cameron Ayers rimmed in a 3-pointer with 2:10 to play, then he made four straight free throws to stretch the lead to 78-63 with 1:26 to play. The Bison hit the 80-point mark for the second time this season when Ayers found Brackney all alone on the baseline for a layup in the final minute.
In addition to his season-high 19 points, Cohen added four rebounds, three assists and a blocked shot. His eight field goals set a new career high. Just as important, he helped limit Ellis, the Patriot League's third-leading scorer at 18.3 points per game, to 13 points on 4-for-10 shooting.
Three other Bison finished in double figures, as Muscala tallied 16, Johnson 14 and Ayers 12. Johnson went 4-for-5 from 3-point range, giving him 222 career treys. That moves him past John Griffin into second place on Bucknell's all-time list.
Ayers scored 11 of his 12 points in the second half after an 0-for-5 start. The rest of the Bison shot an incredible 17-for-19 from the field in the first half. Bucknell went 10-for-20 in the second period and finished at 61.4 percent for the game.
Army shot 44.4 percent overall and went 8-for-14 from 3-point range. Bucknell had a 26-21 rebounding edge and forced 14 turnovers.
Julian Simmons hit three of Army's 3-pointers and led the team with 15 points. Josh Herbeck added 14.
Including the postseason, Bucknell is now 24-1 against Patriot League foes over the last two seasons, with the one loss coming at West Point last season. The Bison have now swept the 2012 season series with Army, and they are now 24-4 all-time against the Black Knights in Lewisburg.
Next up for Bucknell is a road test at Colgate on Wednesday night. The Raiders lost a close 59-58 decision to American on Saturday.
Bucknell-Army Highlights
